The Chicano theatre movement dates all the way back to the time of Spanish Conquistadors, and was able to spread from the South-West to the rest of the U.S. because of the introduction of the railroads. The very first theatrical activity was based around the Bible and biblical narratives and were performed until as late as the 1940s. More secular plays were also performed, but mainly by the anglo settler's covering the topic of Spanish history. Although the Chicano theater experienced a decrease in activity around the Great Depression and WWII, there was a revival in the movement around the 1960's in response to worker's rights in order to produce social change. Examples of these theater troupes include Luis Valdez's El Teatro Campesino and Jorge Huerta's Teatro de la Esperanza. Not only did Chicano theater performances preach the injustices against Mexican-Americans, it also provided for the exchange of cultural ideas and the uniting of cultural groups across the U.S.
Another sub group of Spanish-speaking theater in the U.S. is Puerto Rican- American theater. Their style of theater was developed in order to keep their people connected to their roots while living in America hoping to gain more economically comfortable circumstances. The style of theater was "organic" with no set theatrical setting. Instead the plays were focused on the actors and would often travel from place to place. Original native Puerto Rican plays did not stick originally. However, along with U.S. control and the unjust economic control placed over Puerto Rico, both mainland theater and theater in the states came to condemn these injustices. Theater companies would often travel to small towns and barrios in order to teach the people about the relationship between the U.S. and Puerto Rico.
Another sub group of Spanish-speaking theater in the U.S. is Puerto Rican- American theater. Their style of theater was developed in order to keep their people connected to their roots while living in America hoping to gain more economically comfortable circumstances. The style of theater was "organic" with no set theatrical setting. Instead the plays were focused on the actors and would often travel from place to place. Original native Puerto Rican plays did not stick originally. However, along with U.S. control and the unjust economic control placed over Puerto Rico, both mainland theater and theater in the states came to condemn these injustices. Theater companies would often travel to small towns and barrios in order to teach the people about the relationship between the U.S. and Puerto Rico.